I believe the pricing for the M4 and Cayman GTS will be very close to each other. This may not be a apples to apples comparison because they are different cars but I am cross shopping these because of the price and possibly similar performance.

The Cayman GTS will be a little slower except for lap times and be a more connected driving experience. For anyone who's not owned a midengine Porsche before it's worth trying. The new Cayman turns like it's on hot buttered rails, even with the electric rack. The new car looks substantially more masculine and has a presence the 987 didn't. I'd take it over anything below a 991 GT3 or Turbo in the P line.

Carbon sport buckets aren't available in the US...yet. They'll launch with the 918 and 991 GT3RS.

I`ve driven a 2013 Cayman S and it`s a nice car as in in-and-exterior wise, the engine is a little screamer and the PDK is really delivering.
I was a little disappointed about the EPS, it didn`t feel connected, just not the right feel about it.

I do feel my 1M is better steering wise, power wise.

I certainly will make a testdrive with an M4, if possible a Cayman GTS, in the Netherlands it will be the same price category.

For I`m not a circuit guy, I do think the M4 holds the best cards form me. The Cayman would be king with a 400HP engine. But this will never happen due to the holy 991-911

Blah! People don't buy Cayman's. People who truly want a Porsche buy 911 or higher. Personally, I don't see the value in the premium over a BMW or Audi unless you are a track nut. I guess if all you care about is prestige then sure, I 'guess' it makes sense. The only car that even remotely intrigues me is the new 991 GT3, but at that price point, I'd rather get a GT-R Nismo and save some loot.

I'm considering both Cayman GTS and M4. The way I'd configure each, they'd likely be around the same price. Car's use would be daily commuting as well as 6-10 hard track days each year. This is what I did with my Cayman R for like 18 months, and it was comfortable and dependable on the street, as well as safe, reliable, and predictable on the track. That was a great car.

Now, I need a back seat. If I didn't need a back seat, I'd go with Cayman in a minute. But I'm telling myself M4 is more attractive because it will likely be faster in a straight line. 991 equipped my way is more than I want to spend. Not many other options for my intended use.

definitely a worthy car to consider if you don't ever need a back seat and don't play golf. looks are subjective, of course, but I think it looks great. saw one in anthracite brown the other day - looked outstanding. it is unfortunately that Porsche won't let the Cayman be as great as it could be. I just can't help but feel that it needs a little more grunt. even still, it's an awesome car that I'd love to own.

The Boxster Cayman is not a serious player until they do forced induction and 400 HP. Porsche has the new turbo V6. Pop it in the Cayman and we have a competition. The enthusiast nonsense of "you should be happy with no torque" is not helping them sell any cars. It's the world's most overbuilt chassis for the world's most underpowered car. They should make it a hybrid if it's going to be slow.

Adding an extra 10 HP to a Cayman is an insult.

Quote:

Pop the hood on the 2014 Porsche Panamera 4S and there it is, bold as brass, a V6. Now, this isn't any normal V6 mind you. It's a twin-turbocharged, direct-injected beast of a mill that churns out 420 horsepower and 384 pound-feet of torque available from 1,750 rpm.

The Boxster Cayman is not a serious player until they do forced induction and 400 HP. Porsche has the new turbo V6. Pop it in the Cayman and we have a competition. The enthusiast nonsense of "you should be happy with no torque" is not helping them sell any cars. It's the world's most overbuilt chassis for the world's most underpowered car. They should make it a hybrid if it's going to be slow.

Adding an extra 10 HP to a Cayman is an insult.

I agree the Cayman needs more power, but I certainly hope it doesn't go FI. Either way, I think Porsche will end up going this route, but it will likely be their newly developed 2.0T I4, and not this V6. Personally, I just wish Porsche would drop their 991S engine in there and call it a day.

Also, I'm not certain about the 981's engine layout. The V6 is used for the Macan, which is transverse. Is the mid-engine layout of the 981 transverse like the upcoming NSX or longitudinal?

Cayman is a nice sports car for sure. With power bump to 340 hp, it should be fast , but the problem i have with is, fully optioned caymans are way overpriced.
I dont think it will be faster than new m3/m4 and if i have to chose, i would take new m without any hesitation.
Now, if i want more focused sports car in the same price range, i would wait for c7 z06. Will cost about the same as cayman, but will destroy stock vs stock just about any street legal car on the track.

The mistake Porsche made is positioning the Cayman as a premium car with an impossible options sheet longer than a tax return. They should make it with 1 engine and 2 trim levels and sell it for $45k and $55k. Maserati was smart enough to figure this out.

Also, I'm not certain about the 981's engine layout. The V6 is used for the Macan, which is transverse. Is the mid-engine layout of the 981 transverse like the upcoming NSX or longitudinal?

981 is longitudinal.

I owned a 987 Cayman S (back when it only had 295 hp) before I got my E92. Honestly, I loved that car. As far as a driving experience goes, I think it's superior to the M3. Yes, the M3 will out-drag it all day long, but the Cayman is just 'fun'. Plus, I enjoy the fact that it's a small car (makes it easy for city use - parking, etc...). But despite it's size, because of the front and rear trunks, it is surprising in the amount of stuff you can carry around in it. (It's still less than the M3, but more than you'd think you can put in such a little car).

My biggest problem is that I need to haul kids around, so I need the back seats at a minimum and the back doors are preferred (so I'm going M3).

While I do track my car as well, mainly I'm buying a daily driver. In that sense the better equipment level of the M3 (at whatever price point you choose) is appealing.

The mistake Porsche made is positioning the Cayman as a premium car with an impossible options sheet longer than a tax return. They should make it with 1 engine and 2 trim levels and sell it for $45k and $55k. Maserati was smart enough to figure this out.

This is what you look like when you bring the Cayman to a track:

Cayman is a much better track car than a E9X M, believe me, I instruct and have owned them both.

That's actually a beautiful automobile in your post, but I have no idea of what your talking about. You do understand that Porsche has the highest profit per vehicle of any of the mainline manufacturers? As a business, they seem to be doing very well without pandering to the budget buyer, and leveraging their sports car brand to sell a fleet of VW SUVs and strange sedans.

But sure, call them up and let them know how stupid they are, and you have the fix, which is to model Maserati.

Agree the Cayman is competitive with an NA E90. You get a different satisfaction from either. With the Cayman less is more. With the E90 it's fun to rip to the end of a track with a rumble. M3 can achieve a higher peak speed but is not faster in lap time necessarily - if peak speed is what satisfies you the Cayman will NOT cut it.

I say think both of those cars have caveman engines at this point. A software driven turbo engine is the future. We buy these cars to get a thrill. The M3 with an ECU flash is going to deliver a giant shit eating grin to my face. Putt-putting around in a Cayman is a nostalgia I don't share. I get it, I just don't want to pay $80k for the privilege of less is more.

There is no greater thrill than watching the speedo skip 8 MPH at a time at over 90 MPH. 95 to 130 down the front straight in 4 seconds is the thrill I want. And I'm going to get it with this M3.